Kolkata, April 2 The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Wednesday approached a single-judge bench of the Calcutta High Court seeking permission to conduct a procession at Saltora in the tribal-dominated Bankura district on the occasion of Ram Navami on April 6.
The district police had earlier permission to conduct the procession. The single-judge bench of Justice Tirthankar Ghosh has admitted the petition. The matter will come up for hearing on Thursday.
According to VHP, the district police have denied them permission to conduct the procession at Saltora stating that other processions are scheduled at the same place on April 6.
On Thursday, there will be parallel hearings on the denial of police processions for two similar Ram Navami processions. The state police had already cautioned that the participants at the Ram Navami processions will not be permitted to carry any weapon along with them.
Meanwhile, the West Bengal unit of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has claimed that the processions will be conducted as per administrative guidelines and the question of violating them did not arise at all.
Meanwhile, a political slugfest has surfaced in the state on Wednesday following a controversial statement by Trinamool Congress legislator Madan Mitra.
On Wednesday, he said that if anyone tries to create tension over the Ram Navami festival, he will not be able to return home without being thrashed.
“If you malign a particular auspicious occasion, you cannot return home without receiving a beating from the people. So I request you not to choose the day of Ram Navami to show your strength,” Mitra said.
Reacting to Mitra's comments, former BJP Lok Sabha member Dilip Ghosh said first the Trinamool Congress leader should learn to stand straight and then throw such challenges. “I will also see who can force me to stay at home,” Ghosh said.
Recently, Leader of the Opposition in West Bengal, Suvendu Adhikari, said that at least 2,000 rallies -- big and small -- will be taken out on the occasion of Ram Navami this year.
He also said that the participation in the rallies on the Ram Navami this year will be double what it was last year.
“Ram Navami will be celebrated this year in a major way. I will be there on the streets on that day. Last year, around 50 lakh Hindus were on the streets to participate in rallies on the occasion of Ram Navami. Last year there were 1,000 rallies. This year there will be 2,000 rallies and around one crore Hindus will participate in those rallies this year,” he said.
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor